Roasted Carrots, Radishes & Jerusalem Artichokes

When it comes to roasting vegetables, the question shouldn’t be: “What vegetables can you roast?” The question should be: “What vegetables can’t you roast?”

Last week, I had some leftover carrots, radishes and Jerusalem artichokes from the farmer’s market (and, sidenote: whoever says the farmer’s market is more expensive than the regular grocery store hasn’t purchased carrots, radishes, or Jerusalem artichokes there before…they’re cheap!) and, as a side for a roast chicken dinner, I decided to roast ’em all in the same oven.

It was as simple as this:

Peel the carrots. Cut off the tops. Slice them in half vertically and throw them on a cookie sheet.

Slice some red radishes in half and put them there too. Same with a handful of Jerusalem artichokes.

Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and into the hot oven (425 F) they go.

Here’s an Instagram picture before they go in:

And here they are once they come out, 25 minutes later (though I popped them back in for a few more minutes to get ’em a little more brown);

Notice how everything shrivels. That’s a sign that your vegetables are roasted. Another sign is: you can stick a knife in and it goes in easily.

The startling thing is how sweet everything gets. Those radishes had an intense bite when they were raw, but cooked? They’re sweet little orbs of kindness.

The best, though, are the Jerusalem artichokes. Roasted, they don’t just get sweeter: they get creamier too. Buttery without butter. You have to try it.

Here’s the whole gang on a plate with some roast chicken (I roasted the chicken in the same oven in a cast iron skillet):

A happy summer dinner with an unexpected side. The lesson is clear: if you have a vegetable, stick it in the oven and roast it. Chances are, it’ll turn out great.